Gaining Customers Through Caption Contests

Kelly “Rags” Ragland is owner and operator of Rags to Stitches Productions, a holistic advertising-specialty company providing a range of services from web design and development to customized apparel.

Caption contests are fun and usually free to join in, which makes them great for engaging users on social media.

You’ve likely seen them before, an entertaining image posted online with the headline “Caption This.” Often these posts are hard to resist, so it is not a major time killer to join in on the fun. If there’s a prize offered, a call to action becomes a call for users to join in and share the contest with friends and followers.

Image strategy

Caption contest images that relate to one of your products and/or services or even one of your own product images gives your caption contest more impact. A kitten on a T-shirt you printed for example. Add the value of showcasing yourself into the fun of the project and make it beneficial to your efforts.

Contest strategy

While a simple image and offer to join in on the fun can generate action and engagement, offering an actual prize can give the contest some real legs. Encouraging users to like and share to enter on Facebook, for example, would spread your contest to others through taking the action itself. This exposure can generate more followers which can be turned into potential customers. The prize choice can be something as simple as a 10 percent discount coupon, or even a free T-shirt or coffee mug.

We’re in a creative industry; let that show in some fun and interesting online contests that generate excitement, engagement, and entertainment for your audience.